And here’s how we spent it.

Brunch

Coffee

Picking pumpkins

Feeding animals

And eating lots of daddy’s favorite seafood.  {This is what 5 lbs of shrimp, 4 lbs of mussels, 5 dozen clams, and 3 dozen oysters look like}.

Happy birthday, daddy!

I love you from the bottom of my heart.

Love,

Your Soogee

Pudgy and delicately sweet, this French toast is a breeze to make and it’s something I’m looking forward to eating in bed this weekend.

http://youtu.be/PzCwsScIYLs

5.0 from 3 reviews

French Toast

 

Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

15 mins

 

Author: The Squishy Monster

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• 1 room temperature egg
• 2 tb room temperature heavy cream
• 1 ts vanilla extract
• ¼ ts of fine salt
• ½ ts pumpkin spice {or cinnamon}
• ½ tb raw honey
• Zest of an unwaxed clementine {or ½ unwaxed orange}
• 2 slices stale brioche/challah/etc
• 1 tb butter

Instructions

1. In a shallow dish, whisk together all the ingredients except the bread and butter.
2. Soak each side of the bread for 2-3 minutes.
3. In a pan/griddle, melt the butter and cook each side for 3-5 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with jam, whipped cream, fresh berries, maple syrup or all of the above.

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Happy weekend, friends!

Love,

Your Squishy Monster ^.~

Brunch with a view.

A delicious dinner by J.

Eel & tuna rolls with baby brother who came down for a surprise visit

I often get asked, what’s your favorite ingredient?  That’s a toughie.  I’m partial to automatically (and most enthusiastically) exclaiming my allegiance to butter or bacon, but not far behind is the humble egg.  Experts ping pong back and forth on whether or not they’re good for you, but my loyalty to the egg remains firm.

Legend has it that a chef’s hat held as many folds as s/he knew how to cook an egg, a 100-fold hat being reserved only for the heads of the most knowledgeable culinary experts.

Eggs are affordable, versatile, convenient, and yummy!  Not to mention, they’re high in protein and have 13 essential nutrients.

Fresh eggs are the best and lend themselves beautifully in everything from my quiche and steak & eggs to bibimbap!

I’m fairly unhappy when my fridge doesn’t hold any eggs and with an abundance of them, (they had a mega-super-deal on organic eggs this week) I was happy to whip up another satisfying egg based dish.

Smothered with hot, gooey cheese, the yolks underneath are still rich and runny, spilling it’s butteriness onto a bed of robust, herbed tomatoes, happily pooling with more cheese.

(Fyi, I had mine for breakfast, but paired with a salad and some rustic bread, it would also make for an amazing supper)!

What else can you make with eggs?

• My favorite breakfast sandwich: Bacon, Egg, and Jam (crazy yes, but crazy good)!
• Omurice/Fried Rice
• Soft Boiled, paired with Asparagus and Cheese (another one of my fave ways to eat Eggs)
• Frittatas
• Crepes
• Spanish Tortilla
• Deviled Eggs
• Eggs Benedict/Poached Eggs
• Soft Scrambles
• Custard/Zabaglione
• Herbed Egg Sandwiches
• Eggs in a Hole/Egg Nests
• Breakfast Soufflé/Casserole
• French Toast/Bread Pudding/Strata
• Huevos Rancheros
• Egg Drop Soup
• Croque Madam
• Eggs Sur le Plat
• Steamed Eggs
• Loco Moco
• Cheesecake/Flan

Baked Eggs {Shirred Eggs}

 

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

5 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Author: The Squishy Monster

Ingredients

• 1 tb olive oil {not extra virgin}
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 ts thyme (or basil)
• ½ ts crushed red pepper
• 12 oz crushed tomatoes (I like San Marzano)
• Salt and pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 ts sugar (or ½ c diced carrots)
• Eggs (as many as you like)
• 2 tb cream
• ¼ c parmigiano-reggiano
• Slices of fontina, gruyere, mozzarella, etc
• Fresh tomatoes, toast, parsley

Instructions

1. In a heavy bottomed pot, slicked with oil, soften your garlic, herbs, and pepper flakes.
2. Slowly add in your tomatoes, season, tuck in your bay leaf and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
3. Sprinkle in your sugar.
4. Ladle in sauce on bottom of baking dish and crack as many eggs in as you want.
5. Drizzle over cream and sprinkle over and layer with lots of cheese.
6. Broil at 350 for 5 minutes (less or more depending on how you like your eggs).
7. Serve bubbling with fresh, seasoned tomatoes, buttered toast points, and garnish with fresh flat leaf parsley.

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Wishing you a golden delicious morning, noon, and night!

Love,

Your Squishy Monster

In anticipation of Labor Day, we fired up the grill early for these babies:

JUST KIDDING!

These are my new fridge magnets that my auntie bought me “just because.”  Aren’t they just the cutest?

Here’s what really made my belly happy this weekend:

Blitz all of the above (except coconut) in a processor and dribble in enough vanilla to bind it all together.  The agave or honey is optional.  Scoop and roll in coconut.

100% raw & vegan…a perfect on-the-go morning boost.  I’ve been alternating these with a cup of white tea with my kale & blueberry smoothies.

Flowers at brunch.

Kimchi bibim naengmyeun….this follows this recipe.

However, I made these with naengmyeun which is a combination of buckwheat & sweet potato starch similar to the dangmyeun for my Korean stir fried noodles.  They have a much chewier texture.

Those are currently dads favorite candies.  He slipped them in my hand telling me, “good candy to eat.”

Shumai & lettuce wraps for lunch.

Rosemary roasted chicken, wilted spinach, and smoked gouda mashed potatoes…family dinner to finish off the week together ^.^

I’ll be attempting to squeeze into Uptown tomorrow for Pack Away Hunger which will be crazy, I’m sure due to the DNC.  I’m also excited about some farm fresh eggs my friend is giving me tomorrow.  Their Hen has been busy and he has at least a dozen to spare.  I go through butter and eggs like crazy and often consider moving somewhere where HOA can’t get me and I have lots of land to do my own thing.

Real Yummies & Squishy Hugs & Kisses

You Squishy Monster ^.~

I’ve had it in my head to watch The Sound of Music very soon.  Maybe I’ll watch it with the Gabs.  She and I have had an amazing whirlwind week of fun and games.  I’d always wanted a boy, but she’s making me want to change my mind!

Eggs Benedict.  With a rich and runny egg, it starts the day off right with a bit of decadence, like the golden ambrosia of early morning.

and I’m here to tell you that there’s nothing wrong with a bit of dessert after breakfast–why not?  Warm Coffee Cake–da bomb paired with a bold french press… (video is written down in the books).

Our Tea Party complete with baby Red Velvet Cakes,  jammy-clad because that’s just how cool we are

Pretty little fishies.  They remind me of the ones that my Aunty had when I lived with her in Texas.

“Chocolate Milkshakes” –total fake out for finicky eaters: Unsweetened Almond (or Coconut) Milk, Unsweetened Cocoa, Crushed Ice, and a bit of Agave for a subtle hit of sweetness.

One even landed on my shirt but flew away before I could catch a shot.  One of the most beautiful things an adult ever told me when I was a kid?

“Just when the Caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a Butterfly.”

All of the other Hydrangeas had browned and sagged, but this little cluster still made it through!  (I wish I had a macro lens to capture all the water droplets).

After the week I’ve had, I thought this was too funny.

I hope that through ordinary life, you’re able to see the good, the happy, the great.  Bad news or not!

Love,

Your Squishy Monster ^.~

Anxiety and depression is something that I struggle with everyday but it’s been bearing its weight on me pretty heavily this week.  It’s been a mad and tumultuous week and something that I’m glad is over–ish, and glad that I experienced it to bring me to where I am now…reveling in a rare moment of clarity where I can truly enjoy simple pleasures such as swimming in a lazy cup of tea with a thick stack of warm pancakes before me, mesmerizing me with its thick glossy coat of golden maple syrup.  (It has to be the real stuff)!  Sure, the carbs don’t hurt but it’s how ever so soft and fluffy pancakes can be with its irresistible crispy edges that, when paired with Saturday morning cartoons, makes everything seem alright.  It’s like the food version of a big fluffy robe and soft cozy slippers.

So c’mon, sink in and get lost with me (at least for a little while).

Buttermilk Pancakes

 

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Author: The Squishy Monster

Ingredients

• 1 c unbleached flour
• 3 tb brown sugar
• 1½ ts baking powder
• ¼ ts baking soda
• ¼ ts fine salt
• ¼ ts cinnamon
• ⅛ ts freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 room temperature egg
• 1 c room temperature whole buttermilk
• 1 ts pure vanilla extract
• Butter

Instructions

1. In your first bowl, gather all of your dry ingredients and sift them in. This includes your flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
2. In your second bowl, whisk together your egg, buttermilk, and vanilla until nice and frothy (approximately 3 minutes).
3. Slowly drizzle your second bowl into your first bowl and mix just to combine (don’t over mix, lumps are fine).
4. In a hot skillet, melt a tablespoon or so of butter and ladle in your batter. *Only flip once and don’t press down.*

Notes

Optional: ½-1 c Chocolate Chips, Blueberries, etc. It helps if you fold them in by hand at the last moment and coat them in a tablespoon or so of Flour first so they don’t sink as much

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What happened to that girl that used to party all night long, slump over in a heap at 5, sleep in all day, smear on lip gloss and do it all over again?  She is gone.gone.gone.  When I think back of how stupid me and my gfs all were, it’s a wonder we didn’t have the SVU involved somehow.  We would hop into cars with boys we barely knew and drive forever, or at least until the next party.  I don’t know what I would do if my future daughter were to do these things.  I’d probably sweat and stress harder than on a day like today (it’s 109 out today eeek)!

So sue me if that same girl today extracts more pleasure out of biting into something delicious at a hole-in-the-wall joint that she just happened to stumble into or perusing through shelves lined with groceries.  I dare you to call me homely.  Justin Timberlake brought sexy back?  I’m bringin’ homely back.

Pssst…there’s nothing to be ashamed of, my friend if you concur

Breakfast

There’s a local place that makes all-butter croissants from scratch.  You’ve probably unknowingly consumed a dozen pastries or so made with sweetex or crisco.  I really like Spectrum and I’m not afraid of lard…and I don’t suppose I must reiterate my allegiance to butter.

Lunch

A type of Korean 5-grain rice, spicy potatoes and stir-fried anchovies.

Dinner

$16 Kobe Burger. Geez louise.  This is what I get for being a foodaholic vs a shopaholic.  Nothing left but pictures and an anorexic wallet.

Midnight Snack

How many Orchids had to die for a chocolate cheesecake, lol (yes, part of being old–er is laughing at your own jokes)

Eating followed an entire morning of going somewhere to look at more food at my local Farmer’s Market.

Sample of tabouli and falafel with baba ghanoush.

Later into the day, me and my friend rode the light rail and watched the sunset…

I hope everyone is having a great weekend so far!

Stay cool (literally and figuratively) because cool is what you make it!

Love,

Your Squishy Monster